Examkin

Question

Difficulty: MediumOrigins of the Cold War and Containment

Source: Henry A. Wallace, letter to President Harry S. Truman, July 23, 1946.

"How do American actions since V-J Day appear to other nations? I mean by actions the peacetime write-up of our navy... our tests of the atomic bomb, the plans for cooperating with the Chinese Nationalists... and the effort to secure airbases in all parts of the world... These actions must make it look to the rest of the world as if we were only paying lip service to peace at the conference table. They make it appear either that we are preparing ourselves to win the war which we regard as inevitable or that we are trying to build up a predominance of force to intimidate the rest of the world."

The perspective expressed in the excerpt most directly challenged which of the following assumptions of emerging United States foreign policy in the early postwar era?

  1. The belief that maintaining a dominant global military presence was necessary to deter foreign aggression and secure peace.Answer
  2. B
    The assumption that the United States should launch immediate military campaigns to roll back existing communist regimes in Europe.
  3. C
    The argument that the Monroe Doctrine authorized the United States to colonize territories in Asia and Eastern Europe.
  4. D
    The contention that containment policies should be limited exclusively to Western Europe and not applied to Asian conflicts.

Answer

The belief that maintaining a dominant global military presence was necessary to deter foreign aggression and secure peace.
The correct answer is correct because Wallace's letter explicitly warns that peacetime military expansion (specifically referencing atomic tests, navy buildup, and international airbases) would be viewed by other nations not as a defensive effort to secure peace, but rather as preparation for war or an attempt to intimidate the world. This directly challenged the core assumption of the emerging containment policy—expressed in measures like the Truman Doctrine and later NSC-68—that global military deterrence was necessary to prevent Soviet expansion and maintain international stability.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the stimulus document for key historical context and arguments.
The author (Henry Wallace) is writing in 1946, criticizing U.S. actions like atomic testing, navy expansion, and acquiring global airbases.
Understanding the author's point of view is essential to identifying what contemporary policy assumption they are challenging.
2
Identify the core foreign policy assumption of the emerging containment doctrine that the author is addressing.
The emerging Truman administration policy assumed that projecting global military and strategic power was essential to contain Soviet influence and secure peace.
This links the historical details in the quote (atomic tests, bases) to the broader containment policy.
3
Evaluate the options to find the one that matches the assumption Wallace is contesting.
Wallace argues that these military preparations look like intimidation or preparation for an inevitable war. This directly challenges the idea that a dominant military presence is defensive and necessary to secure peace.
Matching the author's critique to the correct policy assumption yields the correct response.

Key Concept

Origins of the Cold War and Containment
Rate this question

Topics

Origins of the Cold War and Containment

More questions from this topic